Indianapolis 500 Milk Bottle

The Drink of Milk in Victory Lane
For over 70 years, winners of the Indianapolis 500 have celebrated in Victory Lane (now Victory Circle) with a hearty swig from an ice-cold bottle of milk – a ceremony recognized around the world as unique to the Indy 500.
In an interview shortly before his death in 1995, Meyer recalled that his favorite beverage during his driving years was buttermilk and that’s what he asked for following the second of his three wins. Three years later, on the occasion of his third 500-Mile victory, he was photographed drinking milk in Victory Lane. Several years after that, the Bottle of Milk became a permanent part of the post-race celebration when Anton “Tony” Hulman decided that milk was a wholesome and appropriate beverage for Victory Lane festivities. For those who may be wondering what the winning driver drinks, it’s no longer buttermilk. Today, it’s delicious, nutrient rich, ice-cold milk served in a glass quart bottle.
The American Dairy Association of Indiana and its Indiana dairy farm families are responsible for ensuring that the Victory Circle tradition endures and prospers. In fact, Sports Illustrated magazine has recognized the bottle of milk given annually to the winner of the Indianapolis 500 as No. 1 among the "sports world's coolest prizes."

Since most of us in the US get an extra hour of sleep on November 4, and you know you’ll still wake up at the same time you normally do every other day, how about using that hour to make sure you enjoy a healthy breakfast?

You and your children will feel full longer and may get less hungry throughout the day if your first meal has protein-rich foods, such as eggs, Greek yogurt, low-fat dairy products or lean meat, and fiber-filled fare, such whole-wheat bread, whole-grain cereal, fruit and vegetables. These foods appear to have more staying power than highly processed foods such as bagels, muffins, doughnuts and sugary cereals unless you add cheese, yogurt cheese spread and/or milk to them.

One of my favorite foods is cottage cheese by far! Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks all can include this protein packed food. Cottage cheese is a very healthy way to sneak in some dairy and protein to your meal. You can make cottage cheese taste a bit savory, like a typical cheese, or can even be paired with something sweet, like fruit.

A common grumble with cottage cheese is that it is a bit bland and some of the kids might not be wild about getting a bowl full. If you are in a run, here is a wonderful site I found of 101 ways to get cottage cheese.

Get Fruity

Do you like sweet with salty? I know I do. Combining cottage cheese with fruit hits both of those cravings and provided a nutritious snack. Take some fresh strawberries and sprinkle them on top of a serving of cottage cheese. Or, pair slices from a ripe peach with cottage cheese. Get out the grill and put some fruit (pineapple, banana, etc.) and serve with cottage cheese.

Top it off for Breakfast

Cottage cheese also works as a spread. Instead of butter you can use low-fat or no-fat cottage cheese the next time you make toast. If you want to make it a taste event better, sprinkle with cinnamon and a dash of sugar. Another idea is to add you favorite jam or some honey.

Easter sunrise service, breakfast, brunch or dinner all celebrate Spring and the beginning of asparagus reaching out of the ground, spinach begging to be picked and eggs ready to be cracked and whipped or hardboiled to color. April is a great way to celebrate the wakening of the earth for a new harvest season! So today in this blog we will celebrate Spring and a few delicious ways to brighten your table after a long winters nap!

I remember as a kid how I didn’t like it when Mom served pancakes/eggs/sausage for dinner. I felt they were breakfast foods and that’s where they should stay. Later, after I became a wife and mom, I would sometimes find myself serving breakfast for dinner and thinking back to how smart my Mom was. BUT, I wanted to make sure my family had gotten their fair share of foods from all 5 food groups so a basic breakfast wasn’t good enough for me.

Food has to be one of life’s great pleasures. For an athlete, it becomes vital to consume healthy foods for optimal performance. Here are some ‘food’ tips for athletes:

Eat breakfast.
Of all the nutritional mistakes you could make, skipping breakfast is the biggest. Muscle glycogen (main way the body stores glucose for later use) levels are typically lower when you wake up in the morning, so you need to replenish by consuming food. Any breakfast is better than no breakfast and a nutritious, high-carb breakfast is best for athletes.

Simple Carbohydrates: found in fruit (bananas, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe), beverages (sports drinks like Gatorade), or snacks (granola bars) can give you energy quickly because they are more readily available to be absorbed by the body. Since these carbohydrates are to be used for energy right away, it’s best to consume them before, during, or immediately after you exercise.

Eat every two to three hours throughout the day.
It’s a good idea to eat a combination of simple and complex carbohydrates throughout the day. Even if just small snacks, eating and drinking throughout the day can help prevent your performance from suffering due to dehydration, severe electrolyte losses, and loss of energy do to muscle glycogen (storage of glucose for later use) depletion. Combine your carbohydrate with protein. For example cheese and crackers or apple and peanut butter.

Drink plenty of water.
Water can definitely be the most important factor effecting sports performance. Not only is it a good idea to drink throughout the day, but also drink a few days or throughout the week before a race or big competition to acclimate your body. On the flip side, make sure you are also consuming nutrient rich foods that are packed with vitamins and minerals, like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein and low fat dairy (milk, cheese and yogurt). You might be surprised to know your fluid (water) needs. Take you weight (in pounds) and divide by two and that is about how many ounces of fluid you need. If you are getting strenuous exercise, you will need even more!

Post exercise nutrition drink, snack, or meal.
After intense exercise it is important to eat to help your body recover for your next workout. It’s a good time to consume carbohydrates and protein within at least 30 minutes post exercise. One of my favorite recovery foods is low fat chocolate milk. Low-fat chocolate milk naturally has many of the nutrients most commercial recovery drinks have to add in the lab – including high-quality protein and key electrolytes like calcium, potassium, sodium and magnesium.

Foods can affect how we feel and research backs it up, according to the US News and World Report, in an article written by Angela Haupt in August, 2011. Changes in our diets can affect our brains chemically and physiologically effecting our emotions and behavior. Many of us tend to think that the nutrients we consume effect how physically healthy our bodies are but many don’t know of the correlation between certain foods and our moods.